Eight months of disruption for rail passengers

Rail customers face eight months of disruption as the next stage of the electrification programme on the Shotts line gets underway this month.

From Sunday, September 25, services between Glasgow Central and Edinburgh via Shotts will be amended so trains will only run between Edinburgh and West Calder all day on Sundays, and after 8.30pm on Mondays-Thursdays.

Passengers for stops between Glasgow and West Calder, including Uddingston, Bellshill, Holytown, Carfin and Cleland, will be served by replacement bus services.

The Lanark service will operate as normal in both directions for those wishing to travel to Uddingston and Bellshill.

This timetable will remain in place until Thursday, December 8, when further alterations will be made with work continuing until May 2017.

David Dickson, ScotRail Alliance infrastructure director said: “Electrification of the railway will allow us to increase the number of seats available on more environmentally friendly trains.

“The work we are delivering represents a huge investment in Scotland’s railway that will help transform travel on our network.

“Work on this scale will have an impact on services, but every effort is being made to keep disruption to a minimum by doing the work at times when passenger numbers are at their lowest.

“We are urging people to check their journey details in advance via the ScotRail app or website. We will of course have extra staff on hand at key stations to assist customers.”